A Selfish Reader

I was recently at the gym, where I overheard an acquaintance of mine talking about a book she’s been reading. She and I have also talked about books, especially when she realized that I’m a librarian. I had a moment’s fleeting thought about going over to her and saying, “Would you be interested in starting a book club?” Then I thought, “Do I really want to be in a book club?” Book clubs are great, don’t get me wrong—you meet new people, possibly read books that you wouldn’t have picked out, but end up loving, have great discussions, and sometimes eat yummy treats.

As I thought about it, however; I got stuck on the part about reading books that I haven’t picked out, because sometimes, those books are duds. I realized that at this point in my life, I don’t want to share my limited reading time with anyone else (except when reading to my kids and sometimes when my husband and I get a chance to read to each other). Perhaps when the kids are grown I’ll give up some of my selfish reading habits and start or join a book group again.

Comments

There's another model for a book club that works well. I'm part of the Mystery Readers book group that meets year round the 2nd Tuesday of the month at the Watertown Library. We do not generally all read the same book. Instead everyone who comes to the meeting talks about what they've read that month. If you haven't read a book- no problem. Come anyway and hear what others are reading. It's a great way to hear about new books that might be of interest. You can come when you feel like it and skip a meeting if you're busy that night. A guilt-free environment. We've been meeting for almost 3 years now and meetings typically draw from 5-10 people per meeting, from a list of about 20 on our mailing list. And with no specific book to read, anyone can show up to a meeting and fit right in. This model could work well for those who read either fiction or non-fiction. If you're interested in knowing more about the model the adult services librarian can put you in touch with me.